lowering interested rates on credit cards...

[spanky]

i was just on the phone with a csr from my credit card. i was talking to him about balance transfers and stuff and he mentioned that i have a high apr, and that i could talk to an account manager about lowering it. i thought that was cool, so he gave me their number. i called but was on hold for a little bit and hung up. now i am wondering, have any of you guys ever talked to an account manager from your credit card company to lower your apr? do they just knock the apr down just becuz u called, or are there some catches? to me, it seems almost too good to be true.... hmmmmm....

 

[RossMAN]

Usually you have to call and say you want to cancel and close your cc account because the APR is high compared to your other cc's.

They'll say, oh well we can drop your interest rate a few percentage points if you don't close your account, you try and squeeze a little more out of them, then you reluctantly say ok.

 

[NogginBoink]

Yes, many times they will lower your rate just for asking. They did for me.

The credit industry is a very competitive industry. It costs them a lot more to get a new customer than it does to keep an existing customer. They want to keep you charging on their account.

By all means call and ask. Politely. If your credit history is good, you've got an excellent chance of getting a lower rate. If they balk, tell them about all the offers you're getting in the mail for cards with lower rates and that you're thinking of switching to a new card and cancelling your current card.

But be prepared to follow through on your threat. If your credit history is a wreck, you may be out of luck.

 

[BenRosey]

I heard on the radio from an *expert* that simply calling and asking for them to lower your rate is rather likely to lead to success.

 

[KK]

I just got a new credit card with 0% till next august on transfers and purchases, then it goes to 7.9% after august. I transfered the balance on one of my credit cards to it. so I'll be cancelling it along with the Amex blue card(no pm, no need to have it) so I'll see what kind of deals they'll offer, both cards are at 9.9 now. Maybe if they throw in pm on the blue I'll keep it. I doubt they will though.

KK

 

[spanky]

Originally posted by: KK
I just got a new credit card with 0% till next august on transfers and purchases, then it goes to 7.9% after august. I transfered the balance on one of my credit cards to it. so I'll be cancelling it along with the Amex blue card(no pm, no need to have it) so I'll see what kind of deals they'll offer, both cards are at 9.9 now. Maybe if they throw in pm on the blue I'll keep it. I doubt they will though.

KK

u suck... show off

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: spankyOO7

Originally posted by: KK
I just got a new credit card with 0% till next august on transfers and purchases, then it goes to 7.9% after august. I transfered the balance on one of my credit cards to it. so I'll be cancelling it along with the Amex blue card(no pm, no need to have it) so I'll see what kind of deals they'll offer, both cards are at 9.9 now. Maybe if they throw in pm on the blue I'll keep it. I doubt they will though.

KK

u suck... show off

I'm an even bigger show off